


Where the Law Fears to Go

by neorenamon



Category: Mulan (1998)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cussing, Drunken Flirting, F/F, F/M, Masterbation, Multi, One Eyed Badass, Voyeurism, ménage à troi, yuri/lemon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-02
Updated: 2018-12-03
Packaged: 2019-04-17 06:45:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14183205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neorenamon/pseuds/neorenamon
Summary: When Fa Mulan/Ping goes into to the training camp, she (he) meets someone they didn't expect: A bounty hunter. The low life of society that makes money hunting down the other lowlifes that the Army and City Guards have not the time or will to deal with. Shǎng Jīn Lièrén takes no shit from anyone, let alone arrogant army officers, and Li Shang will find out the hard way what a woman can really do with spears, staves and her own feet. No one is going to "make a man" out of her. The fur will fly in more ways than one.





	1. Along came a Bounty Hunter

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Mulan fic. Hope you like it.

by neorenamon

"We're almost to the training camp, Mulan," said Mushu, "Remember what we said about sounding more 'manly'?"

"Yes," she replied, coughing as she changed to a false lower voice, "I'm manly and I want to do manly things!"

"Great!" he answered, "You're gonna fool them all!"

Mulan dismounted her horse and began walking towards the perimeter of the training camp. Wearing armor and clearly having a sword on her belt, she wasn't stopped or given anything more than a cursory look by the men posted on the road she was coming up.

Before she got any closer, Cri-Kee chirped from her shoulder.

"What do you mean 'Someone's riding up behind us'?" asked the dragon as he looked back.

There was indeed a rider coming up behind, and while they wore armor, they looked rather disheveled and filthy. Even at a distance, she could see the rider had a large patch over their left eye. With a boiled leather helmet over their head, there wasn't much of their face they could see besides the eyes, nose and mouth. There was something across the back of their horse that looked like a large carpet or rug rolled up.

The dragon and the lucky cricket both hid in the horse's saddlebags before they were seen.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the rider came up, and slowed down by her. They seemed to be checking her out with their one good eye.

"So who's your father, kid?" they asked at last.

In spite of the deeper than normal voice, Mulan replied, "Are you... a woman?"

She laughed before she replied, "Figured that out all by yourself, did you?" Taking off the helmet, a ponytail spilled down her back. It was jet black in color just like her eye-patch.

"So... what are you doing out an one of the army's training camps? Woman can't join."

"Turning in a deserter," she replied as she cocked a thumb at the roll behind her, "This guy's head is worth one thousand silver Yuan. I really have to wonder who the hell he pissed off so bad."

"Well... I guess someone has to do it," she muttered.

"You didn't answer my question, kid," replied Jīn Lièrén.

"Well... I'm here... for the Honorable Fa Zhou."

The mounted woman laughed. When she did so, her voice sounded more feminine.

"What's so funny?" Mulan growled back.

"Fa Zhou has no son," she smirked, "Let me guess: One of his cousins?"

"Nono, of course I'm his son," she replied defensively, "Just one... he doesn't like to talk about."

"Don't lie, kid," she said as her deeper voice returned, "I know with his war injuries, Fa Zhou cannot answer the call himself. Did his wife convince you to take his place? Keep face for him? If the Army finds out you're lying... or worse, not related..."

"Fine," she sighed, "I'm his cousin on his brother's side of the family."

"See?" she said as her horse fidgeted, "That wasn't so hard. You got a name there, kid?"

"If you know the Fa family so well, why don't take a guess?"

"Oh," she smirked, "A challenge. What do I get if I'm right?"

"I... have nothing I'm willing to wager."

"Fine," she sighed, "Just for fun then." The mounted rider looked her over. "It's been a while since my father last visited the Fa compound", she mused at last, "so things have changed. Judging by the hair and eyes, though,.. are you Fa Ping?"

"You are good," she replied in her deeper voice, "I am Fa Ping."

She looked ahead from horseback as she said, "Well good luck there, kid. If that place doesn't kill you, it's gonna make a man out of you."

'Ping' laughed nervously as the rider rode ahead. She had to move to the side of the rode as a group of Army riders came out of camp. Looking at them, Ping realized there had to be officers among them. One of them looked important enough to be a General, but she didn't know which one he might be. Ping also moved off the side of the road as the men rode by in a great hurry.

Jīn Lièrén seemed to know where she was going, so Ping walked behind as she approached the largest and best looking tent in sight. Out side was a rather disagreeable looking man who only seemed capable of scowling at everyone and everything. He seemed particularly interested in using some kind of death stare on the bounty huntress.

"What do you want here, bounty hunter?" he spat as if 'bounty hunter' itself was a cuss.

"I want a thousand silver yuan for this deserting dirt bag," she spat back at him as she turned the horse sideways.

"Then just keep riding, you low life," replied the man, "There's no silver here for the likes of you!"

Just then, a much younger and more handsome man emerged from the tent. He was a well dressed and an officer.

"I was just about to send this filthy bounty hunter on her way, Captain," he growled as he looked back.

The man ignored the adviser as he asked, "So who's the bounty?"

"Tao Bing," she replied evenly.

"Really?" he asked, "He's worth a good bounty... or so I hear."

"One thousand silver yuan to be precise."

"I told her we don't keep that kind of money..." began the adviser.

"Oh Chi-Fu, a fast rider should be able to get to the nearest Imperial City and back with the silver in less than a week."

"But Li Shang, I don't want this filthy..." protested Chi-Fu.

"Fine, I can set up outside camp. I can wait a week for that kind of silver. All I ask in return is access to the camp mess area," she replied.

"You mooch!" he cussed, "That belongs to the Army..."

"Fine," replied Shang, "It's not like we're giving her the officer's food. There's plenty to go around, so stop counting beans. We have one more mouth to feed for a week."

"Well she better not interfere with training!" he growled back.

"Does laughing at incompetence count as interference?" she replied with a smirk. She pulled a strap, and her burden dropped behind her horse with a loud thud. The bundle groaned in pain. Then the horse raised its tail and dropped a few road apples on him.

"I see that even the horse hates deserters," smirked Shang.

"Oh, she's such a good mare," cooed the rider as she stroked the braided mane.

"Whatever!" growled the adviser. He was seriously pissed that the bounty huntress was going to be anywhere near them for a week.

She looked at Ping, and then looked back as she added, "Oh, and the cousin of Fa Zhou is here to join up. Might wanna cut the kid a little slack. He doesn't look... that imposing."

"No one gets any unfair breaks in my camp," replied Li Shang.

"Funny words coming from a pampered General's son," she said as she glared into his eyes.

" **How dare you imply!..** " shouted Chi-Fu.

Shang, however, tilted his head back and laughed loudly. "I'm the head instructor here," he replied at last, "Turning these recruits into elite troops. I'm not here for show. I'm not here just because of my station."

"Hah..." she laughed, "If you were all that, you'd be on the front fighting the Mongols."

"As soon as these troops are ready, I'll be on my way to reinforce my father's troops."

Chi-Fu looked like he was going to have an heart attack.

"We'll see about that," she grumbled as she rode past Ping.

Ping walked up to the adviser as they turned over the recruitment scroll.

"What's you name?!" he growled as he snatched the scroll from their hand.

"Fa Ping!" they snapped back.

"Why didn't Fa Zhou answer the call in person?!"

"He's old... his war wounds would..."

"EXCUSES!" he hissed.

"Calm yourself, Chi-Fu," said Shang as he laid a heavy hand on the adviser's shoulder, "Since he has no son, it's perfectly legal to send a male cousin in his place. He's already done more than his fair share for the well being of the Empire."

"FINE!"

"Someone didn't get their bran this morning," smirked Mushu from the horse saddle bags.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" he shouted as if he was about to blow a gasket.

"I said nothing, sir!" replied Ping almost in a panic.

"Unless Ping here is a ventriloquist, he couldn't have said it," agreed Shang. He looked more sternly as he added, "Cousin of a war hero or no, I'm not going to show you any favoritism, trainee. You'll pull your weight like everyone else."

"Understood, sir!"

"Now go find a tent and get settled in," he continued, "Training begins first thing in the morning. I expect everyone up at the crack of dawn. No exceptions."

"Yes sir!" she replied. As she turned, she watched the bounty huntress ride out of camp. Ping had a feeling they would meet again over the course of the week... for better or worse.


	2. Camp Chaos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first day of training arrives and things don't start out so well...

by neorenamon

"Oh no!" muttered Ping, "I'm already late for the first day of training!"

They moved towards the central clearing to where she could see the other trainees gathering. Several of them had there eyes on Ping approaching them. They seemed to have been milling about since the crack of dawn, and Ping was a good hour later than that.

"Well if it isn't Ping? I guess our _new friend_ slept in," asked the taller, skinnier guy leaned into Ping's face, all but touching nose to nose, "Sleep well? Have a good breakfast?"

"I hope you're still hungry," added the short, angry one with a black eye, "I owe you a knuckle sandwich!" He reached up and grasp Ping by the collar, but as he pulled his fist back, a small rock hit him right between the eyes. He blinked as he let go and backed up.

"Cut the kid some slack!" called Jīn Lièrén as she walked in behind Ping, "My mare got loose this morning and he helped me bring her back! Something I'm sure only a GENTLEMAN would do!"

Ping wondered if she was camped on their side of the camp.

"Ouuu..." he grumbled, "Is the _other_ pretty boy here already kissing a woman's ass?"

"I betcha they shared the same tent last night!" added some random guy from the crowd.

Now that she had walked into sight, they could all see the bounty huntress more clearly. Even in a man's robe and pants, her curves were much more noticeable, both on the bottom and on the top. Ping wondered how tight her chest was when she was wearing a man's armor.

Then again, armor for a woman was basically all but unheard of. The only reason Fa Mulan could get away with wearing her father's armor was she was just starting to bloom into her own womanhood. She didn't have large hips and surely didn't have anything to brag about when it came to her chest.

"How much did you pay..." said the short one before another rock smacked him in the forehead.

"I strongly suggest you shut up now, or they'll be spending all day digging my shoe out of your..." she growled.

"SOLDIERS!!" yelled Shang, "You will assemble swiftly and silently each morning! Training begins promptly at DAWN!" scowled Li Shang as he strode in from his tent, which was more of a pavilion compared to the trainee tents.

Everyone fell silent as they turned to look at him. He walked over to a barrel full of training staves and took off his shirt to hang it from one of the weapons. Among the staves was a recursive war bow. He turned his back to them as he removed the bow and a shorter quiver of arrows.

' _By the Gods!_ ' thought Ping, ' _He's HOT!!_'

"Anyone who disrupts the morning routine..." he added as he strolled down the line of men (though it was more of a Chinese fire drill than a proper line), "will answer to me!"

"I could get used to _that_ ," sighed Jīn Lièrén.

He glanced over in her direction before he said, "So... what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"I'm here for the grub," she replied as she stared openly at his sculpted arm and chest muscles, "and apparently the view as well."

Many of the men chuckled at her comment.

"Ouu..." grumbled the short one, "We have ourselves a tough guy."

"YAO," said Shang as he knocked an arrow and turned around. He pointed the weapon right at the short loud mouth as everyone else took a large step back.

Yao's face was a mask of sudden concern for his own well being, as rumors abounded about how ill mannered recruits could be executed by their officers.

"Thank you for volunteering," he said as he raised his aim high and fired an arrow at the top of the pole in the middle of camp. The arrow struck about half a dozen inches below the top.

Everyone stared at the arrow before Shang continued, "Now retrieve the arrow."

"Fine," he grumbled as he put one fist into his open hand, and bowed, "I'll get that arrow, pretty boy..." He stepped forward as he added, "With my shirt on."

He was just about to reach the base of the pole as Shang walked up behind him.

"One moment, trainee," he said as he gestured for Chi-Fu to come up as well, "You seem to be missing something." The adviser had a box that was clearly heavy in his hands. He opened the box and pulled out a pair of fairly large lead discs with square holes in the middle. They looked like copper yuan, but almost a foot across each. A heavy cloth strap was through each, making a long grip of sorts.

Tying the first weight around Yao's right wrist, he raised it and said, "This... represents Discipline."

As soon as it was released, the weight dragged the short one's arm straight down. By then, Shang had moved around to repeat the procedure with the other wrist.

"and this..." he added, "represents Strength."

When he released the other arm, Yao fell flat on his face. This elicited laughter from the other trainees (well, other than Ping, who looked much more concerned).

"You need both of those to retrieve that arrow," he continued.

Looking around, Yao once more approached the pole. He jumped up and grabbed the pole, and started shimmying up towards the arrow. He had only cleared a few feet before he started losing his grip, and tried to stop himself using his own teeth. Well, he slid down anyways and stripped off some of the wood in the process before he landed hard on his ass.

Each trainee in turn tried the same thing, and each in turn failed spectacularly. Most of them would have a sore ass for most of the morning.

"We've got a long way to go," muttered Shang as Ping walked by. Ping was the last one to try the test.

"Maybe the brave, strong Captain should show his men how it's done?" asked the bounty huntress. Her voice sounded a bit off.

Ping glanced at her as they realized she was talking with a mouthful of porridge from the camp mess. They wondered when she slipped off to get a bowl full of the stuff.

"The Captain has NOTHING to prove!" scowled Chi-Fu.

She shoveled the last of her food into her mouth, and set both the bowl and wooden spoon aside on a tree stump.

"Or does a girl have to show the boys how it's done?" she asked as she strolled over to the Captain.

"I'd like to see that," growled Yao.

A number of the men grumbled in agreement.

"You are not one of my trainees," replied Shang.

"What?" she cooed as she leaned close to his bare chest, "Afraid to be shown up by a mere woman?!"

"FINE!" he snapped, "Go ahead and try!" He strapped the weights around her wrists and the men just stared.

She walked to the pole and stopped. "Oh wait," she said, "I'm not quite ready."

Everyone gaped as she proceeded to drop her own pants. If it wasn't for the tails in back and the drop in the front, they'd be staring right at her loincloth. When got their attention though was her well developed buttocks, thighs and calves. She may well have had legs stronger than a man twice her weight.

"INDECENT!!" howled the adviser.

Even the Captain was taken aback by her blatant exhibitionism. "Everyone will LOOK AWAY NOW!" he barked.

"An officer and a gentleman," replied Jīn Lièrén as Ping turned to look... somewhere else.

A few minutes passed before Ping risked a peek, turning their head just enough to get the pole climber in their peripheral sight. Shang was less than a yard away from the pole, and he was staring straight up her shirt. Chi-Fu, on the other hand, scowled as he examined the ground at his feet. The bounty huntress was half way up the pole, exceeding the best trainee's attempt by several feet. However, several of the other men were peeking as well.

'PERVERT!' thought Mulan. She knew well enough how indecent it was for a man to stare at a naked woman that he wasn't engaged to. Of course, that didn't apply to prostitutes, but she didn't actually know any from her small village.

"No one better be peeking or there's going to be hell to pay," said Shang as he started to look around.

Every head snapped away from the pole.

More time passed. Then Ping heard the slap of a weight on wood followed by another.

"Interesting," said Shang, "She's using the weights themselves to pull herself up the last of the way."

"Cheater!" growled Chi-Fu.

"Don't bother pulling out the arrow," added the Captain, "It doesn't count for anything but a demo."

"Okay boys," she added, "You can look now."

They all turned to see Jīn Lièrén sitting on top of the pole with both weights under her butt. There was still a good view of both her muscular legs, but Ping wasn't in a good position to see her butt cheeks. The men openly gasp at her display of athletic prowess.

"How is she going to get down?!" asked the adviser.

The bounty huntress simply pushed off and fell, executing a full forward roll on the way down. Just before she hit, she pulled her legs up with them bent at the knee. Once her feet touched and her legs absorbed some of the force from the landing, she immediately sprang forward into several forwards rolls.

More gasps. Hard to say if they were gasping at her skill or just the view of her ass as it flashed by.

"YOU LEFT THE WEIGHTS UP THERE!" howled Chi-Fu.

Shang snorted as he shimmied up the pole, put he weights around his neck/back, and then climbed back down to the ground. Ping noticed that while Shang mostly used his hands and feet to climb, the bounty huntress mainly used her elbows and knees to keep her grip.

"Some day," he said as he looked around, "This will be just as easy for you as it was for the bounty huntress here." For just a second, Ping thought they saw her blush at his compliment. He turned as he looked at her and asked, "So how did you get your legs so strong?" he asked as he dropped the weights at the base of the pole.

"Kick training and jogging with lead ankle weights," she replied evenly, "A woman's legs is one of her greatest assets in a fight."

"That's true," he replied as he looked around, "Men have upper body strength while women have lower body strength." He paused before he added, "Well now that the show is over, let's get back to serious training."

By then, Jīn Lièrén was putting her pants back on and tying off the rope belt.

"She's... amazing," sighed Ping.

"Why don't you marry her?!" hissed Yao.

Ping gasp, then began stammering, "Well... I'm sure she'd be... that someone would... I'm not just..."

The bounty huntress laughed as she said, "As if I'm looking to get hitched!"

"I dunno," said the skinny one, "I think the Captain is giving her the eye."

"He's probably just thinking about how he can get in her pants," replied the one behind Ping.

"SILENCE!" howled the adviser.

Shang grabbed two handfuls of staves and threw them out. Everyone snatched a staff from the air except Yao grabbed Ping's staff first, and then used it to trip them up.

"This is going to be... amusing," she sighed as the all sorted themselves into rows far enough apart not to hit each other... by accident.

"Maybe for you," sighed the Captain, "I'm looking forward to months of... hell."


	3. The Deserter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Ping/Mulan learns a little something about horse breeding she didn't really want to know, the deserter Tao Bing makes good on his escape plans. While he'd certainly like to get some revenge on a certain bounty huntress, he also plans to snag some insurance on the way out as well.

by neorenamon

"Someone get the number of the mule train that ran me over?" groaned Ping as she moved along the mess tables.

After the first full day of training, that's just how sore and aching they felt. Li Shang seemed to take great pleasure in body slamming them into the ground while he in turn easily rolled and landed properly when someone did it to him.

That didn't even count the number of staff strike she took to just about every part of their body. Fortunately, nothing was serious or the camp physician would have examined Ping and blown their cover 'as a man'.

Jīn Lièrén came by only a couple of times during training to point and laugh. She was apparently more interested in making sure Tao Bing didn't escape before she could collect the bounty on his head.

Ping overheard a few snippets of conversation between her and Shang about how cagey and ruthless the deserter could be, including those who were unfortunate enough to foolishly get in his way. While the bounty itself was for desertion, he surely had a long list of other crimes including robbery, murder and at least one case of rape.

But that was someone else's problem in Ping's mind, as surviving training seemed to be a much more pressing concern at the moment. If it wasn't the other trainees tripping them up at every chance, it was her own guardian dragon's incompetent interference that made them look like a cheater in the eyes of Li Shang.

They also had to go to great lengths to not give away their feminine traits. While most of them men had no problem whipping it out and pissing on whatever was available, be it tree trunk or rock, Ping had to go to great lengths to avoid letting anyone see her with her pants down. Fortunately, there was outhouses for those other than officers, and Ping wasn't the only one who was shy about acting like a bear in the woods.

While the bean and rice stew she was fed was filling, it was rather bland compared to what they ate back home. Her family was rich enough to have meat at every dinner, but it looked like in training, they might get a little meat at most a couple of times a week. They did manage to procure some vegetables and spices from the local markets to add a little texture and flavor to the slop mix.

The worst part is none of the other men would sit with Ping and certainly none would speak with them. It was very lonely. Sitting in the bench along the corner, they were all but isolated from the rest of camp.

"Mind if I join you?" asked a voice she already knew well.

"Sure, ma'am," they replied.

The bounty huntress sat on the bench next to them, eliciting a number of looks from the men around them.

"You sure aren't winning any popularity contests around here," she mused as she spooned some slop into her mouth.

"I didn't come here to be popular," they grumbled.

"Well you sure got that point down pat."

"Are you just here to tease me?" sighed Ping.

"Well no," she sighed back, "I just want you to know... I share your pain..."

"How could you?.." they asked as they looked into her eyes.

"My mother was murdered before my eyes when I was a child," she announced, "and father was left a cripple. I had no brothers to look after me,.. and my sister ran off to get married at a big city."

"Oh my..."

"I was bullied and beaten frequently," she continued, "so I had no choice but to teach myself how to fight dirty. It was the only way to protect myself. Soon, people treated me like an animal because clawing and biting was the only things I could do to stop bullies."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"A passing bounty hunter... he took pity on me," she said, "Since I had nothing left in the village I was born to, I left with him. He taught me how to properly fight with staff, spear and my feet. He taught me when it was good to fight clean, and when to fight dirty. When I got older, he even taught me how to use my god given assets to distract my male opponents."

"So..."

"I'm just telling you this... so your problems don't seem so bad, kid," she sighed, "If I can overcome my past, I'm sure you can put up with the shit you're taking around here."

"I see..."

"PING!" snapped a voice they knew too well.

They turned to face Li Shang with three others behind him.

"Sir?" they asked.

"You will be joining Yao, Ling and Chien-Po on kitchen cleanup duty before you are off duty," he ordered.

Yao and Ling looked like they hated the notion of kitchen patrol, but Chien-Po seemed to be pretty comfortable with it. Ping wondered if he worked in a restaurant before getting the draft notice.

He looked around and added, "If I catch anyone else helping them, they will also be punished! Am I clear?!" The last part was said as he stared at the bounty huntress.

"What?" she asked, "Do I look like a waitress to you? I don't do... charity work."

"You might not be part of the army, but I'm commander here and you will obey me."

"If I'm naughty, will you spank me, daddy?" she asked suggestively.

He was taken aback by her tone and Ping thought he even blushed a bit. It quickly passed as he snapped, "I have the authority to inflict corporal punishment in this training camp as I see fit my dear!"

"Promises promises," she giggled.

"ENOUGH!" he growled, "I don't have time for this!" He turned and walked off, leaving Ping with the other three.

"This is all your fault," growled Yao to Ping.

"Don't sell yourself short, shorty," replied Jīn Lièrén, "You're doing a great job of screwing up all on your own. After all, Ping here didn't make you mouth off to an officer."

"Pretty boy," he grumbled, "I bet I could take him in a fair fight."

"Why don't you, then?"

"The guards would take his side," he muttered, "and I'd just be another dirty convict."

"I still have to comb and feed my horse," they sighed.

"Don't worry, kid," she said with a smile, "I can take care of both of our horses... if you don't mind him hanging around my tent."

"I don't see a problem with that... Thanks so much." Ping didn't think about what might happen considering their horse was a stallion (as in not a gelding) and hers a mare, or that breeding season wasn't that far off for horses.

Then again, none of the other men bothered to think about that either.

So Ping wolfed down the rest of her food before helping the guys gather up the dishes and wooden utensils. Once the rest of the trainees were gone, they gathered up the iron kettles to drag it all down to the nearby creek to wash them out. Chein-Po was quite willing to lug the worst of it as far as the iron pots went, some of then Ping was sure was large enough for them to completely curl up into and still have room to put the lid on over them.

Daylight soon faded into the darkness of night. They had to haul everything back in the dark. By the time everything was stored, Po was about ready to sleep standing up.

Just as they were about to return to check up on their horse, she noticed a suspicious movement.

' _Hey, someone's trying to be sneaky,_ ' she mused, ' _They can't be up to any good._ '

She crept off after them, realizing they were heading for the place where the officers tents were.

' _Wait. He's going towards Chi-Fu's tent. What could they want there?_ '

It was clearly a man, but the poor lighting of the camp prevented Ping from seeing any clear details. Then they slipped into the tent.

"What do you want..." was all she could hear Chi-Fu say before someone got jumped.

"Shut the hell up," growled a voice she hadn't heard before, "You're my ticket out of this hell hole and the Army is going to pay good to get the likes of you back."

There was sounds that Ping couldn't make out. Slipping around to the back of the tent, she peeked under the edge. She could see that Chi-Fu was down to his loincloth, and a large ugly man was tying his hands behind his back.

 "You'll never get away with this, foul miscreant," sneered Chi-Fu as he was tied.

' _The deserter_ _!_ ' she thought in a panic.

The talk ended when a balled up cloth was shoved in the adviser's mouth and tied behind his head.

"I bet you have a money box I can walk off with too," growled Tao Bing as he looked around.

He spent time rummaging around until he came up with a silver box and a good sized curved knife.

"You're better off to me alive, but I'll slit your throat from ear to ear if that's the distraction I need to get away."

Chi-Fu didn't seem pleased to hear that at all.

He stuffed the box and a few bottles of wine into a sack, and tied them off to his waist. Then he forced Chi-Fu to his feet and headed for the tent flap.

' _He's a hardened killer!_ ' thought Ping, ' _I have no chance against someone like him! There's no time to get the bounty huntress either!_ '

She spotted a large rock next to the tent and remembered what Jīn Lièrén said about when to fight dirty. So she hefted the rock the size of her head with both hands. Then she peeked around the corner of the tent.

Tao Bing shoved the adviser out before he himself risked looking around. The stolen knife was out, but not at the hostage's throat.

"I hope I don't have to slit your throat, but I'll do anything I have to do to insure my own safety... even deserting this worthless army. I don't care if the horde comes, I'll just run south and wait for them to be driven back."

When he turned to move away from the tent, Ping hurled the rock with all her might, striking the man right between the shoulder blades. Both men fell down as the deserter ran into the adviser. The knife was also knocked out of his hand, so Ping jumped on this back and used both arms to grab the man's neck.

"GUARDS!!" they hollered, "GUARDS!!"

The two armored men who showed up initially pointed their spear in Ping's face, but soon Li Shang came out and began untying Chi-Fu. It was only a couple of more minutes before Jīn Lièrén showed up as well.

"What happened?' asked the Captain as he removed the adviser's gag.

"THIS... THIS... barbarian jumped me in my sleep!" he howled.

"Ping?" he asked as he looked their way, "What were you doing out here?"

"I saw this man sneaking around the camp," they replied, "I... followed him to see where he was going."

"You could have jumped him sooner!" scowled Chi-Fu.

"No, you did the right thing, Ping," countered Li Shang, "You aren't ready for thugs like him."

'How did you do it, kid?" asked the bounty huntress.

"I... I... just threw a big rock at his back..."

"Like a coward..." sniffed the adviser.

"I'm so proud of you," she sniffed.

"Don't be so hard," replied the Captain, "This recruit most likely just saved your life..."

"All because I was on kitchen patrol duty," added Ping.

"That's it," growled Shang, "Tomorrow morning, this scum bag gets hung!"

"Well he is wanted... dead or alive," agreed the bounty huntress.

"Four men will watch this man in two hour shifts until it's time to hang him high!"

Ping blanched. They had never seen a man get executed before. Swooning, they would have collapsed on the spot if the bounty huntress didn't catch them.

"Are you hurt, Ping?"

"No," replied Jīn Lièrén, "The kid's had a long, hard day. I'll get them back to bed."

"Fine, but nothing else," he warned her.

"Don't confuse me with a common camp follower," she scowled back.

Putting Ping's arm around her shoulders, she held them up by their sides as they walked back towards their side of camp.

"Is Khan... okay?"

"Oh, that's your horse? We're getting along just fine," she smirked, "Both me and my mare."

"Gotta check on him," yawned Ping.

"Sure," she replied.

When they came around, the horses were still wide awake, and Khan had his nose buried under the mare's tail. There was a strange noise coming from him.

"What is Khan doing?" she asked half awake.

"Just being... friendly," smirked Jīn Lièrén.

"Huh?"

"Not a horse breeder, are you, kid?"

"No..."

"Then it's probably for the best that you don't know what he's doing with my mare right now... with his tongue. Let's just say... she isn't bitching about it."

Ping blushed badly, but was hard to see in the low light.

"Let's just say he wants to give her his seed when the time is right... and she's ready to have some foals."

By then, Ping was fading fast. So tired... so exhausted... Their legs were starting to give out.

"Kid?! You with me kid?!" asked the bounty huntress.


	4. Exposed and Confused

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jīn Lièrén knows who Ping really is now, but offers to help conceal her identity by allowing Ping to stay with her. Will Li Shang allow it, and how will it affect Ping's standing with their fellow trainees?

by neorenamon

Mulan awoke in a strange place. It felt like the dream she just had where she was running around naked, and all of the soldiers pointed and laughed at her. They mocked her for not being anyone worth marrying or loving. It was all she could do to keep both hands over her breasts and prayed they would all just go away.

"Awake now?" asked someone nearby. It was Jīn Lièrén. They were sleeping in the same bedroll. Mulan shot upright and realized her chest wasn't wrapped any more. Her small and perky breasts stood out from her chest in the chill of the morning air. Her hair was loose about her head.

She began hyperventilating before the bounty huntress put a hand on her shoulder and said, "Don't worry, I won't tell them about the real you... Fa Mulan."

She self-consciously covered her chest with both hands as she looked about the tent of the bounty huntress. It was actually more pink and better smelling than she dared imagine her tent would be.

"So kid, how old are you really?"

"I'm 16 years old," she stammered.

"When I took you for a boy, I could have sworn you were more like 13 tops."

"MULAN!" shouted Mushu as he jumped in her face and grabbed the hair at the sides of her head, "Are you alright?!"

"16 and still not married?" smirked Jīn Lièrén.

"We were... working out something with the marriage broker when the draft notice came," she replied as she looked down in shame.

"Oh no, it's all over!" moaned the dragon, "I'll never be taken seriously as a family guardian now!"

"Take it down a notch," replied the bounty huntress, "I won't tell. It would be a shame to see another hanging so soon after the deserter this morning." She sat up and Mulan could see that she wasn't wearing anything either.

"Well what now?" she asked as the lucky cricket jumped onto Mulan's head.

"Well you're going to live with me, of course," smirked Jīn Lièrén as if that were the most obvious answer in the world.

"WHAT?!" asked the dragon and the startled Mulan at the same time.

"I can't live on the camp, so you'd have to move out here with me," she replied, "and as long as your in for training on time, there's not much Li Shang can say about it."

"Why do you care so much?" asked Mulan.

"Your father deserves to have his daughter back safe and sound," she answered as she leaned in and hugged Mulan tightly, "Now training won't start until Tao Bing has been hung, so let's get you dressed up so you can watch a man hang with the others." She sniffed her shoulder and asked, "Besides, when was the last time you bathed?"

"That was more than a week ago," she replied, considering her trip on horseback just to reach the training camp she was assigned to.

"For the time being, you'll have to settle for a quick sponge bath," she mused as she pulled up a bucket of water, "Don't worry, I know how to be real quick... when you have help."

"Help?"

Jīn Lièrén just smiled.

...

Li Shang gathered the men around the largest tree in the area as he pronounced the deserter's sentence and the noose was prepared for his hanging.

Ping and Jīn Lièrén walked up, both in armor. Ping with their 'uncle's' sword and Jīn Lièrén with her favorite spear. They were both cleaned up rather well.

Li Shang raised an eyebrow as the two approached.

"Ah, good morning Captain," she cooed as she walked up to him, "I have something to announce."

"I see," he replied, "and what might that be?"

"Since by law I can't live in camp, Ping will be living in my tent just outside camp."

The trainees released a wave of ooos, ahs and whistles. Ping responded by looking down.

"I will look after his horse, armor, sword and other gear when not in use."

"Did you?.."

"Did we sleep together? Yes. Did we have sex last night? No," she said frankly, "Ping is shy, so I'm not... pushing him."

"This is what you really want, Ping?" asked Shang as he looked hard and long at them.

"Yes," they replied, "I... think I love Jīn Lièrén and... being close to her makes me feel... good."

"As long as you keep up training, I guess I shall allow this."

"So the filthy bounty hunter isn't going away?!" growled Chi-Fu from behind Shang.

"An army won't do well if they aren't happy, so... some things have to be... accommodated... for such things," said Shang awkwardly.

"A wise decision, Captain," she replied.

"A decision I'm not entirely thrilled with," he added.

"Understood, sir!" said Ping sharply, "I shall always strive to improve myself!"

Everyone settled down as the noose was thrown over a thick limb. The deserter was brought up on the back of a large horse before the noose was slipped about his neck. His hands were bound behind his back to keep him from grabbing the rope. With a slap on the rump, the horse ran off leaving him to swing at the end of the rope. Ping covered their eyes as the man made strangling noises. It took several minutes for him to die.

The camp physician certified the man was dead before he was cut down, and then everyone returned to training as if it never had happened.

Ping knew the man would be buried under a pile of rocks and dirt somewhere near the camp. It would be far enough away to not stink, but close enough should some form of identification be required before the bounty was paid up. Normally, though, the word of an Army Captain and an Imperial Adviser would be quite enough.

This morning would be different. There would be a long march of a good dozen miles before breakfast while having a bamboo pole across their shoulders. At each end hung a sack containing a good 15 pounds of rock and dirt. Even the Captain went along with his own load. The bounty huntress came along for having really nothing better to do, and she managed to get a burden of her own.

Ping collapsed at the half way point when they turned to go back. They were the first to drop, but not the last by any stretch.

When Li Shang came back for them, he glared at Jīn Lièrén who was already helping Ping up and shouldering their burden herself.

"Planning to carry Ping too?" he asked accusingly.

"I can walk," protested Ping.

"I think he did well enough for his first try," answered the bounty huntress, "He's used to riding horses, after all."

"The last ones back do not get to eat breakfast," he warned them.

"Yeah, that will motivate him to do better," she growled.

"It's the Army way," he retorted as he turned to get back to the others, "You either shape up or ship out."

"Pity they don't allow women here," sighed Ping, "Jīn Lièrén would be the best recruit you have."

He simply glared back over his shoulder as Ping had said something truly evil.

Half a dozen other failed as well, so Shang carried all of their burdens back to camp and still managed to not fall behind. Ping felt a little better at not being the only one missing breakfast.

It was lucky that the endurance run didn't happen more than twice a week. Everyone needed a couple of days to get stronger when they recovered.

After lunch, the recruits were taken out to the archery range. Like many others, Ping had never fired a bow before. Unlike the others, they had an advantage in that Jīn Lièrén was proficient with bows and was perfectly willing to tutor Ping in the art of archery. No one else got personal instructions, but before long, a dozen men crowded in to listen to her giving pointers to Ping.

By the time that day was over, Ping had considerable improved. Li Shang pushed through to look at Jīn Lièrén as she made demonstration shots.

"So you're an archer too?" he asked.

"The good bounty hunter knows many weapons," she replied as she fired off yet another bull's-eye. In fact, she split her last shot more than half way down the shaft.

"Are you trying to say you're better than me?"

"All I know is you have more men to train than you can realistically handle," she said as she turned to face him, "Many men will fail because you can't give them the personalized training that they really need."

"Captain!" scowled Chi-Fu, "She's challenging your authority in front of your own men! This should not be allowed to stand!"

"So you think you can teach men how to fight?" he asked after an awkward silence.

"Obviously," she replied.

"Tell you what," he announced, "I'll have some... tests... for you tomorrow. Pass them and I'll make you a full instructor here."

"If I should fail?" she asked.

"Then Ping will be booted from camp and so will you," he answered in a challenging voice.

"You okay with this, kid?" she asked as she looked at Ping.

They nodded.

"Tomorrow at dawn, we shall begin," she replied evenly.


	5. The Contest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In order to stay in camp, Ping must hope that Jīn Lièrén can pass Li Shang's tests. It turns out that the tests involve going head to head with the Captain himself in a number of events.
> 
> But first, Ping learns a few more things about the Bounty Huntress...

by neorenamon

After another long, hard day of training, Ping crawled back into the tent of Jīn Lièrén.

Today, they were back to staff fighting. While most of the men learned how to maneuver and attack with a staff, Ping was given more private training in the proper stances and uses of spears. After all, no army actually used a staff in war, but everyone used spears. The two weapons, however, were not entirely unrelated: One had a sharp point at one end and the other did not.

Several of the men seemed to cluster around them, listening to her advice. Ping, on the other hand, wasn't too sure the men had alternate motives to be closer to the bounty huntress by the way she filled out her own training uniform. Of course, Chi-Fu bitched about giving out Army materials, and Li Shang once again told him to stop counting every bean and button.

They were tired enough not to really notice they were being stripped down, and Mulan's hair was let down before crawling into the bed roll. She crawled in behind the young woman, spooning the curves of her own body.

"Jīn Lièrén?" she asked.

"What'cha need, kid?" she replied as she nuzzled Mulan's ear.

"How... old are you?"

"Normally, a lady would be insulted being asked that," she smirked, "but... I'm 16 years old."

"What?!" replied Mulan.

She laughed before she said, "Everyone takes me for someone in my twenties or thirties, don't they?"

Mulan had taken her for an older woman, considering her... physical assets. "So..." she mused, "Why keep calling me 'kid'?"

"Aw c'mon," she replied, "Can't take a little teasing?"

"Oh..."

"Do you think... I can pass Shang's tests tomorrow?" asked the bounty huntress.

"I guess if anyone can, it's you," she replied.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," she mused, "but seriously,.. why don't you just wash out and go home?"

"I was a failure as a daughter," she sighed, "I don't want to disappoint Fa Zhou as a son, either."

After a chuckle, she answered, "Maybe you're just being too hard on yourself. I really don't think your father sees you as a failure."

A couple of fingers ran through her cropped hair.

"Wow, what did you cut your hair with? Your sword?"

"Yes," replied Mulan.

"I can make your hair more even in the morning," she said as her fingertips brushed over Mulan's earlobe.

"Stop that," she said as she squirmed, "That tickles."

A moment of quiet passed.

"You're lucky, kid," sighed Jīn Lièrén, "that your family can even afford a matchmaker. They wouldn't let someone like me within a mile of the place."

"I could go without getting married," she sighed back.

"Men!" she snorted, "Can't live with them, can't hide all the bodies from killing them!"

"WHAT?!" asked Mulan and Mushu.

The dragon and cricket seemed to just appear from nowhere.

"Of course I tease!" she giggled, "I've only had to kill... three men in my life... and they all deserved to die!"

"I'm not sure... I can kill."

"Humans have a strong sense of self-preservation," she said as she rubbed Mulan's shoulders, "You'd be surprised what we can do... when backed into a corner."

Mulan suddenly turned her head back and asked, "Wait, are you flirting with me?"

"No..." she replied awkwardly, "Yes... uh... maybe?"

"Ain't nothing hotter than a little _girl on girl action_ ," said Mushu in a failed attempt at being sexy.

Mulan tensed up.

"Thanks for ruining the mood, you fire-breathing gecko," sighed Jīn Lièrén.

"So... you, uh... like women?" she asked after a pause.

"You mean like 'like' women?" she replied.

"Yeah..."

"Well let's just say that I don't hate men as much as I let on," she sighed, "If he wasn't so... pig-headed..."

"You mean that Li Shang?"

"Yeah, that... hunk of man meat... So well built... so sculpted..."

"I know what you're saying," sighed Mulan.

"I betcha you'd have a much better chance of catching his eye than me, if..."

"I was dressed like a lady instead of a man?"

"Yeah... you're pretty... young... in his social class..."

"Well you have two of three on those too," she giggled as she rolled to face the bounty huntress.

"May I... uhm..." she asked awkwardly.

"May you what?" asked the more petite woman innocently.

"May I... kiss... you goodnight?" she asked, the words almost getting stuck in her throat.

"Sure," she giggled, "but no tongue on the first date."

Jīn Lièrén cupped her hands behind Mulan's head and turned her own just enough to kiss her on the lips. It only lasted a second or so.

"Goodnight," sighed Mulan as their foreheads touched.

"Great," muttered Mushu, "Her first real kiss and it's from a chic."

"Can I shove that flaming iguana up Khan's butt?!" scowled the bounty huntress.

"I could never be so mean..." she replied.

"Yeah," added Mushu.

"... to my father's horse."

"I don't get nothing but disrespect around here!"

...

After the breakfast, all the men were gathered to see Shang give the tests to Jīn Lièrén.

"The first test is archery," he said as he lead them to the archery range, "We each pick someone to take turns throwing tomatoes in the air. Twenty in all. The one who scores the most hits wins one point."

Ping was chosen to throw for Jīn Lièrén, and Ling chosen to throw for Shang.

Since the bounty huntress missed two tomatoes and Shang one, he won the point.

"The next test is a ten mile run," he said as he headed to the edge of camp, "with weights."

"I dunno..."

"What's wrong?!" hissed Chi-Fu.

"Make the test fair by doubling the weights."

Everyone stood slack jawed for a few minutes, but Shang agreed in the end.

With her much stronger legs and jogging with leg weights, she won the race easily and scored a point. They were now tied one point each.

"Li Shang obviously went easy on you," scowled Chi-Fu from the finish line.

"Keep dreaming," snorted Jīn Lièrén, "like your chances of getting a woman to sleep with you that you didn't pay in advance."

The men all laughed as Li Shang came up.

"So what's next, my Captain?" she asked as she waggled her eyebrows.

Ping facepalmed.

"How about three rounds in bed?" suggested Yao.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that," growled Shang, "No, the next test is to see who climbs the pole fastest with the weights on their hands."

With her powerful legs, the bounty huntress got to the top of the pole fastest.

"Stop embarrassing yourself in front of the men," growled Chi-Fu.

"Have a little faith in me," he replied.

The next test was seeing who could toss Yao the furthest. He was the closest thing they had to a dwarf.

"WHAT?!" asked Yao.

Considering legs weren't allowed, it went to Shang and his superior arm strength. Once again, they were tied and it was noon.

He had corn-fed steak while she had gruel with the men.

"The final test," he said after the came back together, "We shall fight with staves until one side yields... or cannot continue."

They moved out into the open around the pole as they prepared to fight. He held his weapon in the classic staff pose while she used a classic spear grip.

They went straight into each other, him swinging both ends of the staff at her while she probed his defenses with thrusts from one end of her staff. So evenly matched was the two of them that they spent a few hours trying to outlast the other. Neither could find a fault in the other's defenses.

"You're good," he sighed as the two paused to catch their breath, "for a bounty hunter."

"You're good," she replied, "for a pampered General's son."

The sun was setting when Li Shang changed tactics. He used his larger size and weight to press into Jīn Lièrén's defense, pushing her staff back into her chest. He headbutted her as soon as he was close enough, knocking her on her ass.

"Yield!" he called as he pointed his staff at her.

"You have to try harder than that," she said winded.

He used a twirling thrust to disarm her.

"Well... that's trying harder."

When he opened his mouth to ask again, she responded by throwing a handful of dirt in his face. She then tackled him, sending his own staff flying. By the time she came to rest, she was on his chest with his head in the iron grip of her thighs. His nose was all but buried in her loins.

"CHEATER!!" howled Chi-Fu, "GUARDS!!"

"Stop!" he called, making the advancing guards stop cold, "We had no established rules, or my headbutt would have been cheating too. I yield, Jīn Lièrén. You are... a worthy opponent."

She got off him and offered her hand to help him up. He accepted her help.

"And you..." she panted, "are surely no pampered General's son."

"Welcome to being an instructor," he said as he offered her a handshake.

The two shook hands as the men all cheered... except Chi-Fu, who scowled mightily. Ping didn't think much of it, but she saw Mushu scowling from behind a barrel as well.


	6. Respect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jīn Lièrén gets invited to the Captain's tent for dinner, and then returns somewhat drunk that night. Can Mulan handle her amorous mood before she falls asleep or sobers up?

by neorenamon

Jīn Lièrén had taken Chien-Po aside to speak with him.

"You wanted to speak to me?" he asked politely.

"Yes," she replied, "I've seen great potential in you that the Army isn't going to use, so I've decided to give you a useful gift."

"Oh, I like those," he said as he clapped his hands.

"Wait here," she mused, "I'll be right back."

Li Shang paused as he watched the exchange, wondering what she was up to.

She returned moments later with a long, heavy package over her shoulder.

' _What does she have?_ ' he mused, ' _It looks like a polearm, but why is it so heavy?_ '

"Here," she said as she offered it to him, "Go ahead and unwrap this."

He was rather eager as he opened it it, and Shang was interested enough to discretely watch as well. When he saw the massive blade appear, he finally realized what she was giving to the mostly gentle giant.

' _She's giving him that old Quan Dao?!_ '

The Quan Dao was a weapon of legend, and Shang only knew a couple of people who could wield it properly. With it's large iron blade, iron shaft and the iron counterweight at the other end, the whole thing easily weighed over 200 pounds. The parts were case hardened to give it a bit more sheen and lasting power, but it was mostly just forged from iron. He hadn't even thought about giving such a massive weapon to any of his recruits considering the weapon was originally made to cut horses (and their riders) in half with a single stroke. It just sat in the camp's armory because there really wasn't any other place to keep it.

Yet as he watched, Chien-Po handled the weapon as easily as anyone else handled a staff.

"This mighty weapon was designed to cut horses and their riders in half with a single stroke," mused Jīn Lièrén, "and the hooked part on the other side of the blade is made to trip both people and horses."

"But... I don't want to kill any horsies," he complained.

"Well, you don't have to," she replied, "but there are monsters out there that are worse than humans, and the ability to cut them down is nice to have."

The giant man nodded.

"But until then, I'm going to teach you how to use this weapon against the Mongols."

He nodded again.

"There's a very special martial art called Kun Tao Kung Fu, or the Way of the Bear. The bear fights using his size and strength to dominate their enemies, beating them down with their great paws and their legs. I think the style suits you well." She paused before she added, "You will end each day's training with a couple of hours of practice with both the Quan Dao and the Kun Tao stances."

He smiled and nodded.

' _That's a valid point,_ ' mused the Captain. He didn't really have the time to give anyone special training the way Jīn Lièrén was.

"Jīn Lièrén," he said as he walked over. The two of them stopped to watch him come by.

"Yes Captain?" she asked.

"After training today, I'd like you to come by my tent for dinner," he offered, "I will be having tea smoked five spiced salmon and Shaoxing for dinner... in honor of your becoming the first woman army trainer... that I know of." The last part came across as awkward.

"Oh," she replied, "smoked salmon and rice wine? I'd be honored to dine with you tonight."

Chien-Po drooled at the thought of the salmon.

Jīn Lièrén glanced up at him as she replied, "If there's any leftovers, I promise I'll get some for you."

He nodded eagerly.

' _She really thinks about the welfare of those under her,_ ' he mused as the giant picked her up in a bear hug.

"Try not to break anything I'm still using," she groaned before he let her down again.

"Captain!" called Chi-Fu as he came over, "There's a matter on the training field that requires your immediate attention!"

"What's that?" he asked as he thought, ' _I've only left them alone for minutes. What could have happened?!_ '

"The one called Fa Ping," he began as the Captain face palmed himself, "He's gone... crazy... I've seen him knock down dozens of other trainees like they're... possessed or something."

"Duty calls," he sighed as he turned, "See you for dinner around sunset?"

"Wild donkeys couldn't keep me away," she grinned.

"Good," he replied as he walked off, "Now let's go see how bad this is..."

' _I wonder what's gotten into Mulan?_ ' she mused as she watched him go, ' _I better see what's going on._ '

"Wait here," she said as she jogged off after Li Shang, "I should be right back."

Chien-Po nodded as he tested his new weapon.

There was chaos on the practice field as Ping was almost spastic in their wielding over their staff. The other trainees were either walking or crawling away from them as fast as they could. The movements were so random that they even managed to strike Li Shang in the stomach before the staff was snatched away.

"What is the meaning of this?!" he growled.

"I... uh... well..." stammered Ping.

Jīn Lièrén watched as a large beetle dropped out of Ping's pants leg. She dashed forward to snatch up the large and jagged bug.

"Here's the problem!" she huffed as she all but shoved the beetle under Shang's nose. Turning around, she asked, "Who's the wise ass who put this down Ping's shirt?!"

No one spoke up.

"Now that Jīn Lièrén is an instructor here, she has full authority to punish any of you as she sees fit!" said Shang forcefully, "You better confess or she can punish all of you!"

After a moment, Ling said, "I did it... it was just a joke that got out of hand."

"How do you think he should be punished?" he asked as he looked at the bounty huntress.

"Oh, I'd make him jog around the camp ten times with marching weights," she mused.

"Very good," he replied as he looked at Ling, "You heard her. Get to it."

"At once," he said as he turned to move away.

"Chi-Fu," added the Captain as he looked at the Adviser, "Have a guard follow him to make sure he does all ten laps."

"Very well," he grumbled as if he was being put upon for a task beneath his station.

"There will be no more of these jokes in my camp!" scowled the Captain as he looked at the others, "If there is, the punishment will be much worse!"

They all bowed to him and nodded.

"Ping," she said, "Take a little break. Get a drink and some bread from the mess area. Come back when you're feeling better."

Shang blinked.

She showed him the beetle again as she said, "It must have been quite unnerving to have this thing crawling around in your clothes. I don't think there's anyone here who wouldn't have been freaked out by this."

"Very well," he said as he glanced at Ping, "but don't eat too much and don't take long. You need to get back to training."

Ping nodded, bowed and walked off.

...

Later...

...

"So..." asked Jīn Lièrén as she looked about the Captain's tent, "Where's Chi-Fu?"

"He... uh... had paperwork he claimed couldn't wait," he replied awkwardly, "He... decided... to eat in his own tent... better concentration..."

They both knew it was a lie. She knew the most likely reason was he didn't want to be around a dirty bounty hunter.

He waved his hand at the table in the center of the room and said, "Please... make yourself comfortable."

She moved to a mat and sat down as he waved over a servant child. The servant was a girl and probably not more than a dozen years old. It was pretty common for the army to use older children as menial labor in places away from combat.

"Xiao Jie," he said, "Bring out the best Shaoxing and the pickled vegetables. I'll let you know when it's time for the smoked salmon."

She moved over to a large cabinet as she opened it and fetched the wine, glasses and pickled vegetables. Since they were pickled, they could easily go for long periods before they turned bad. Jīn Lièrén was used to eating such things in the various restaurants when she had some spare money, after all.

Soon, the two of them were plucking tender bits from the bowl of sliced ginger, beets and radishes as they discussed the best way to train the men to counter the Mongolian horde and their massed charging tactics.

"The best way to deal with superior numbers," she said before sipping her wine, "is to control where the battle takes place and when."

"Agreed," he said as he took some wine as well, "but we aren't sure what route they're taking yet."

"It is vital that we get this information before the battle is planned," she replied, "I hope your father's army is using his scouts to their fullest."

"He's a great general," he answered, "I'm sure he is."

Between the two of them, the whole bottle of Shaoxing was drained before they even got to the smoked salmon course.

At one point, Shang blurt out, "I just want to apologize to you."

"For what?" she asked.

"I... judged you because of your sex and social standing," he said awkwardly, "That was... wrong."

"That's alright," she replied, "I... judged you for being a General's son. Most of them... they have no idea what hard work and toil is like. Some day, I think... you shall surpass General Li himself..."

"That's very kind of you to say," he said as he looked down, "but my father... he has huge boots to fill. I don't know if I can measure up to someone as great as him."

"You're modest," she answered, "That's good. I'm sure all the men look up to you as someone they want to be like... even Yao... in his own way... respects you."

He laughed nervously as they went back to eating.

It didn't seem that long before they had gone through the appetizers, the main course, the fried rice, the fresh fruit desert and another two whole bottles of wine before dinner was over.

"I better let you go," he said as he walked her to the tent flap, "We can't let the trainees see us... at less than our best tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah... right," she replied, "but... I just want you to know that I had a good time with you tonight... You're quite the gentleman."

"There is... one more thing," he said as he stepped closer.

"What's..."

He placed a hand in the lower part of her back as he dragged her into a full mouth to mouth kiss.

"MMMPPPHHH?!" she murmured as the two mouths met.

He placed his other hand behind her head, holding it against his own as the two exchanged tongues.

"Mmmm..." she purred as the kiss dragged on.

She had no idea how long until the kiss ended, but it felt like a long while.

"See you tomorrow morning," he said as she left.

Suddenly, Shang popped out of the tent behind her.

"I almost forget," he said as he offered her a box wrapped in a cloth, "You did promise the leftover salmon to Chien-Po."

"Oh, I did say that, didn't I?" she replied sheepishly, "Thank you." She took the package and left.

She strolled back to her tent half aware of what was going on around her. Soon, she was back to her tent and strolled in.

Mulan was already in bed, but got up the moment the bounty huntress stumbled in.

"So..." she said as she moved to hug her, "How was dinner with the officers?" She noticed that Mulan had already undressed herself.

"Actually kid," she replied, "It was just Captain Li and me. The adviser pooped out."

"So it was just the two of you?" she asked suggestively, "Did... anything happen?"

"Not much," replied Jīn Lièrén as she stepped closer, "Just... this."

She repeated the motions of putting her hand on Mulan's lower back and dragging her into a kiss.

"MMMPPPHHH?!" protested Mulan.

Considering Mulan was already undressed for bed, the bounty huntress could feel her bare body pressing into her. However, the kiss was much shorter than the one she shared with Captain Li back in his tent.

"Ugh... you're drunk," sighed Mulan.

"And you're just so beautiful," she replied, "I will be sober in the morning, but you'll... still be the prettiest woman I've ever seen."

"Aw go'wan," she said as she blushed hotly. Mulan was hardly used to getting such compliments except from her father.

Jīn Lièrén hiccuped.

"I better get you in bed as fast as I can," she sighed as she stripped down the bounty huntress.

"Thanks kid... I mean Mulan."

"You're welcome," she replied, "You're the kindest person I've met since I left my home village."

"Well you're the most honorable person I've ever met," said Jīn Lièrén, "No one I've met before would go to such lengths to protect their father and preserve their family's honor at the risk of their own lives."

"It just felt... like the right thing to do."

"I... I love you," she purred as she dragged Mulan into a tight hug.

"I wonder if you'd mean that if you were sober," she chuckled back.

"Sometimes... I need some booze before I can... really talk to someone with complete honesty."

Tilting her head aside, she leaned in and kissed Mulan's throat. Her hand slipped down to caress one of her butt cheeks.

"You know... you have such a nice butt there..."

"Well... that's nice of you to say... but we should go to bed now..."

She laughed nervously as she realized she didn't really have the strength to push Jīn Lièrén off her. The bounty huntress continued to kiss the side of her neck hotly.

"We should really get to sleep," she protested.

She instead began sucking on the spot she was kissing. It was rather noisy as well.

' _Oh crud,_ ' thought Mulan, ' _She's giving me a hickey?!_' She knew that seeing that mark on her throat was going to be the talk of the camp the next day.

"There," she said as she broke off the kiss, "All the guys tomorrow will know that... you're my special one." She emphasized the point by squeezing Mulan's ass hard enough to make her squeak in alarm.

Mulan sighed as she hugged her, but then realized she seemed to be getting heavier. Her head slumped on her shoulder.

' _Crap!_ ' she mused as she realized, ' _I think she just fell asleep in my arms! I'm glad things... didn't go any further... than this. It would have been so... awkward._ '

Even in her wildest dreams or nightmares did Mulan think she'd ever have to deal with an amorous and drunken woman. She sighed as she moved Jīn Lièrén into the bed roll and slipped in behind to spoon her as they slept.

' _I hope there's enough wine-laced water to help dull the hangover in the morning._ '

It was a common practice to place a little alcohol into drinking water as it countered the 'evil spirits' that might be dwelling in various places like rivers and wells. It was hardly noticeable unless you knew it was already present if it was something like rice wine, but beer or ale was a stronger flavor than that.

"You know, Jīn Lièrén," she sighed as she wrapped her arms about the bounty huntress' waist, "Maybe... I love you too." It was a very awkward thing for her to admit, but then it wasn't as hard to admit something when the other person was sound asleep.


	7. When Fireworks Fly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The practice artillery rockets have arrived and the Captain feels it's time for the rookie troops to try them out.

by neorenamon

When the trainees lined up in the morning, they noticed that there was some wagons nearby that weren't there the night before. They looked important enough to be placed by Li Shang's tent.

There was murmuring among the soldiers about what the wagons might contain, and why they had not been unloaded as of yet.

"Probably heavier training weights," muttered Yao.

"Maybe it's tastier training food," sighed Chien-Po.

The Adviser stood by the Captain's tent wearing a scowl as he looked over the gossiping troops.

"Good morning," said the shirtless Shang as he emerged from the tent.

' _Oh gawds he's so hot,_ ' thought Mulan as she fanned herself with her hand. A quick glance told her that the bounty huntress was appreciating his sculpted muscular body as well.

"Good morning, Captain," said the troops almost as one.

"You may be wondering what got shipped here last night," he said as he waved his hands towards the wagons, "Well this is the first load of artillery rockets from the Imperial Armory. Today, we start practice with those."

There was a collective gasp from the men.

"So," he mused as he glanced in Shǎng Jīn Lièrén's direction, "Ever used these on a bounty hunt?"

"No," she replied evenly, "They're only available on the Black Market. One doesn't become a criminal if they want to make a living hunting them."

"Well then," he chuckled, "You're certainly invited to observe today."

"Thank you," she replied, "I think I shall take you up on that offer."

"Those who fail practice today will not have breakfast," he warned as he looked at the others.

Fa Ping gulped.

"I don't think any of these men have even seen something larger than a fireworks rocket," mused the bounty huntress, "What makes you think any of them..."

"I believe that the target area will be generous enough that a number of trainees will pass today," he replied as he glanced in her direction. "Besides, there's enough rockets for everyone to get about three chances."

She nodded.

"Alright men," he mused as he looked around, "Unload those wagons and get the rockets out onto the field! We haven't got all day!"

The trainees jumped to attention as they moved towards the waiting wagons.

...

Later...

...

A target dummy was set up with colored rings of sand around it. The green sand circle was 10 yards in radius, the blue circle another 10 yards beyond the first, and the red circle another 10 yards beyond that.

Li Shang demonstrated how to use the rockets, even though he did not fire his. Then the men lined up and set up their own rockets.

Since they were trial rockets, the tubes holding them were only made of bamboo wrapped in ropes. They were only made to be fired once, and not reloaded. The warheads were also smaller than normal. Mostly to make a loud bang and a fairly small explosion. Each rocket launcher also had two bamboo legs so it was effectively a tri-pod once it was set up properly.

Soon the rockets were flying even though none in the first volley was even landing close to any of the rings around the target. The Captain simply sat on a nearby tree stump and massaged his forehead.

Just as Ping lit up their rocket, Ling walked by and kicked the legs out. The rocket fell against the ground, and they picked it up before it fired. However, they hugged the launcher to their chest, causing the rocket to fire over their head and back in the direction of the main camp.

Shang blinked as he followed the smokey trail the rocket left behind. In fact, everyone was following it with their wide eyes. It exploded somewhere towards the middle of camp.

"Well this practice session hasn't been boring," mused the bounty huntress.

"I have the feeling I'm going to hear all about this soon," muttered the Captain. He went out among his men and gave them more advice on how to aim. This time, he fired a rocket and promptly blew up the target.

Ping was sent back to the wagon to get a new target dummy.

While they were gone, Chi-Fu turned up. They couldn't help but notice that part of his nice robes were singed and he didn't look too happy about it.

"How can we help you today?" mused Shang.

"Who's the wise-ass who blew up my tent?!" he shouted.

"Really?" he asked.

"I was just stepping out of my tent when a rocket blew up right next to it!"

"As soon as I find out who did it," he replied, "I promise they shall be harshly disciplined."

"Good," he said as he turned around, "I have a tent to reorganize. Hopefully nothing valuable was destroyed." He proceeded to stomp off back towards camp.

Shǎng Jīn Lièrén wandered over, whispering to him as they watched the adviser leaving, "I'd give Ping some bonus points for nailing his tent."

He chuckled and responded, "Maybe so, but I don't want the trainees to get the wrong idea." Sighing, he continued, "Well, if I don't punish him in some way, I guess I'll never hear the end of it from him."

"I suggest that instead of withholding breakfast, Ping can wash the dishes afterwards."

"Good idea," he replied, "I'll do that."


	8. Let's Get Down To Business

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Training turns more serious if not possibly deadly when it comes time to run across an open field under the fire of burning arrows.

by neorenamon

"Today," announced Li Shang, "We'll be getting down to business." He said this to the trainees assembled in the morning who blinked in surprise. Even Shǎng Jīn Lièrén raised an eyebrow.

A moment of silence fell over the field.

"We're going back to the archery range for some... special training," he continued.

So they all filed over to the field where bows and arrows waited for them. There was about a dozen bows ready next to a quiver of arrows sitting on the ground. Next to that was a lit torch that was also placed in a holder standing in the ground.

He went over to a station and picked up an arrow. They noticed that something was covering the end of the arrow.

"This!" he said as he showed the arrow, "is pitch! It burns when you hold it over the torch!"

"Oh... burning arrows," said Yao, "Now that sounds great."

"Isn't that a bit dangerous?" asked Chien Po.

Li Shang walked aside as he said, "You will be firing the burning arrows at the targets as fast as you can... no matter what."

Ping blinked.

"Now start firing," he announced. He walked around the side of the field until he was half way between the shooters and their targets. Flaming arrows began raining down around the targets.

' _What's he up to?_ ' mused Mulan as they watched the shirtless wonder.

Suddenly he broke into a run, moving across the field as the flaming arrows rained over and around him. He kept running until he crossed the field avoiding all the arrows as he went.

He smiled as he turned and said, "You can stop firing now!"

Another moment of silence happened.

"You may be wondering why I did that?" he asked.

The trainees nodded.

"That is your next exercise," he mused, "Dodging enemy archery fire."

They collectively gasp.

"Now everyone who isn't shooting line up over here," he called to the others.

The remainder of the trainees lined up behind Li Shang.

' _Oh hell,_ ' thought Mulan, ' _If I get hit... they'll find out I'm a woman as soon as they try to treat my wounds... if I'm hit, it's more than over... I'll be put to death!_ '

"Now resume firing!" he ordered. Once again, he ran across the field as an example to the others. The rest began following after him. Fortunately, the trainees using the bows weren't experts and they weren't actually aiming at the runners.

Yao, however, had his ass set on fire as he ran across. It wasn't pretty. Fortunately, the blunt arrow didn't sink in far and he was able to pat out the flames on the other side. Li Shang dismissed him from training for a day while his butt healed, but he was also banned from breakfast. He was the only one who was hit so solidly.

Ping managed to cross the field without a direct hit, but their robe was singed slightly from a couple of extremely close calls.

Li Shang and Shǎng Jīn Lièrén watched closely as the men ran. After everyone made their run, the archers were rotated so that they could make the run while others were shooting. Even the bounty huntress came to slip out of her coat and make the run with them.

The trainees were almost distracted when they saw that her chest was only contained by strips of cloth they were wrapped in. Many of the men were hoping she would go as topless as Li Shang, but they still got something to watch and think about.

"What?" she asked as she glanced at Li Shang's curious gaze, "Can't let you set all the examples for the troops without adding something of my own, can I?"

"I'm glad you're taking your role as instructor so seriously," he replied as he allowed himself a small smile. "Still," he added, "Perhaps you should put your coat back on before the men become... too distracted?"

"Well... if my chest is so distracting now, what happens if they think about such things during a battle?"

"That is a perfectly valid point," he replied as he scratched his chin. He walked over and casually unwrapped her chest as the men (and Mulan) were left slack-jawed. Even the bounty huntress was left with a red glow in her cheeks. Her perky, firm breasts were soon visible to all.

"Well I have to admit you have something... worth being distracted for." He turned to the others and said, "Anyone who touches her like this without her permission will be HARSHLY PUNISHED! Shǎng Jīn Lièrén will decide herself what the appropriate punishment will be! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!"

"Understood!" replied the trainees together.

"Everyone runs the gauntlet twice before breakfast," he ordered, "other than those already injured."

They all knew he meant Yao.

While the bounty huntress said nothing about the cold, Mulan couldn't help but notice how it make her nipples stand out the whole time she was running the arrows with the trainees.

"Ping," she asked when they were all done, "Could you help me?"

The men seemed a bit jealous when they came over to help wrap her chest once more and put her coat back on. But then, they were used to seeing the two together so much, they just assumed they were more than just teacher and trainee.


End file.
